Obituary of Annarose Amendolara Nurse

July 1, 2025

A Tribute to Our Mom:

Anna Amendolara Nurse

From: Rosemary and Dorian

There’s no short or simple way to provide a synopsis of our mom. The family called her by her birth name Annarose, she was known as Ann to some and Anna to others, but no matter what she was called, everyone knew her to be larger than life — smart, funny, energetic, and just chock-full of personality.

Mom came from humble beginnings. She grew up in an Italian immigrant family in Brooklyn. Her father, who owned an ice business, died when she was only six leaving her mom widowed in a new country with six kids to feed. Life didn’t hand her much, but even as a young girl, she was incredibly determined and had an unrelenting drive. But high school wasn’t exciting for her and by 10th grade she’d dropped out to pursue her dream of becoming an opera singer. With the support of a magnanimous uncle, she followed her passion for music and began her vocal training with Juilliard singing coach Leila Ratner. In 1954 she probably had her proudest moment of her career when she made her solo singing debut at Carnegie Hall. From that point, she continued to hit her stride performing in many operas across New York, singing at weddings, nightclubs, and even her church choir - all while keeping up her love of horseback riding with the Prospect Park Equestrian Club.

A few years later, in 1958 at age 31 (practically considered geriatric!),  she finally married her greatest love — our beloved dad, Eugene Stanley Nurse, an Englishman by way of Barbados and Nova Scotia, Canada whom she affectionately referred to as “my Gene.” They met as children in their Windsor Terrace neighborhood when she was 10 and he was 11. Although their personalities and backgrounds were vastly different, they had always maintained a strong connection.

In the early years of marriage, Mom was happy to be a homemaker, devoting herself to raising the two of us, caring for her mother and disabled brother, and volunteering in our church and school. But by the late ‘60s, she began to become restless and signed up to sell Avon. She quickly became THE top seller on the Eastern Seaboard for several years running. But being known as “Ann the Avon Lady” wasn’t enough. She took a cooking class with the legendary Marcella Hazan and was inspired to share her love of Italian cooking by becoming a teacher herself.  It didn’t take long before she became an esteemed culinary instructor sharing her talents and teaching her techniques at the New York Restaurant School, DeGustibus, and Peter Kump’s New York Cooking School (now Institute of Culinary Education) while also becoming an active member of several professional organizations for culinary professionals.

By the 1980s, Mom had founded the original student stage programs at the James Beard House and became the first woman to lead an event, preparing a huge last-minute luncheon as a fill-in for another award-winning chef.

Her dedication to the James Beard Foundation was deservingly recognized in 1996 when she was presented with the James Beard Perry Award - an award given to individuals who have demonstrated outstanding volunteer service to the James Beard Foundation.

She found so much joy in the culinary world that she was determined to continue sharing this  love for cooking with those kindred spirits looking to pursue a career themselves. With this goal in mind, she brought her workshops to City Tech (CUNY), where she invited acclaimed chefs and cookbook authors like her dear friend, Nick Malgieri, to teach students to bake and cook. She even established a scholarship in her name to help the next generation of chefs to chase their culinary dreams.

Life wasn’t always easy for our mom, yet somehow she always managed to give her time, her prayers, her heart, and her gifts to anyone in need. Her compassion was never performative or fleeting. If you needed something — a meal, a favor, a friend, a lifeline — she was your personal GoFundMe. Whether it was organizing fundraisers, collecting clothes, or finding a plumber or a priest, she got it done.

A single example of this was when a nearby home caught fire in the late 1970s, killing four of the ten family members that had been renting the attic. Mom sprang into action. She organized a drive that provided food and clothing to the survivors and enough money to ensure those lives that were lost were laid to rest with dignity. She was the connector, the fixer, the philanthropist, a veritable powerhouse.

She simply loved God’s people and she collected them by all walks of life. She could meet someone on the street or in an elevator and quickly make them part of her larger circle. She was fiercely proud of her Italian heritage, but didn’t prefer one type of people over another. Her friend groups were quite diverse. She loved this because it broadened her perspectives, made her more empathetic, and fostered her understanding of other cultures. When she met someone for the first time, she’d ask about their heritage, their faith, their birthday and, of course, what they liked to cook. Food was always the bridge that connected her to her people.

In 1969 she met a young couple from Hong Kong and from that one connection, became Kai Ma (godmother) to a dozen+ children from several families. She blended these Chinese families into our Italian one, creating community through shared values and the universal language of sharing good food. She even learned to cook Cantonese cuisine and taught classes!

But at the center of it all was her unwavering faith. Her deep love for God undoubtedly shaped the way she lived — with grace, purpose, and devotion. Even when dementia stole much of her memory, she never forgot how to pray. Her rosary beads were always in her hands and she thanked everyone with “God bless you.”

From whence she came, she had many accolades— her opera career, her culinary leadership, her outreach efforts and philanthropy, but no doubt her most cherished role was being our mom. And she was a proud grandmother to Dana, Francesca, Alexandra (who follows in her footsteps as a chef) Morgan, Chase, and Cameron. Though dementia kept her from truly knowing her six great-grandchildren — Luca, Nico, Gino, Dominic, Francesco, and Alessandra — she’d still light up when she saw their photos.

Each one of us felt like we were her favorite. She was our comfort, our anchor, our matriarch and our role model. And the best way to honor her is to carry this legacy with us in how we care for one another, in how we welcome others, and in how we love, without limits or conditions.

Rest in peace, dear Momma - you certainly earned it. 🩷

No flowers please. Please honor Anna’s memory by doing a good deed or saying a prayer for a friend or stranger and if you’d like, donations may be made in her honor to City Tech - Anna Nurse Hospitality Management Scholarship.

 

 

 

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